What is ERP?
Lets understand ERP software in very basic language. ERP full form is Enterprise Resource Planning, so ERP is a specialised type of software for handling business activities.
Like you have photoshops, after effects and coreldraw for graphics work and AutoCad for scientific designs like that to manage business we use ERP softwares.
In nutshell if you want to understand ERP then you can say ERP is a type of software which is specially designed for handling business’s day to day activities like Finance, Inventory, Purchase , Sales , manufacturing and other important modules.
Utility or Value of an ERP software
Utility of ERP software is very high and important. ERP lets you handle all your business resources very properly and efficiently. Because good ERP softwares has the capacity to validate or counter anything which is not in order and not going according to company policy.
You can set company policy in ERP software like if you want to give a discount but it shall exceed 20% then in ACCU360 ERP you set the highest level of discount per item wise. So when you create an invoice or give Sales Quotation and if your Sales Executive wants to give a 21% discount then you can display notice or you can send for approval.
ERP provides this kind of feature which you can configure to automate your business.
ERP softwares really adds some good value to your company and to your company’s ecosystem as well and gives clear visibility and policy of your company to your employees or investors.
Does ERP help in scaling business?
Yes, ERP software can really give you a very strong pillar to scale up your business. If you are using quality based and well process driver ERP Software then those ERP will have all the features to handle your large business operation and also can easily handle your business. ACCU360 has all the features which are needed for multi branch companies like.
- Cost Centers
- Branch Wise configuration
- Roles and Permission
- Multi Currency
- Multiple country’s compliances
- Multi level workflow.
- Team coordination and collaboration
So, any ERP which is following real concept of ERP software then all these will bear minimum features and during selection of ERP you should clearly have a demo.
Business Process Development in companies.
As you know, to handle any situation in business we already have a business process like for financial entries you use the Journal Golden rules and then we have the Journal Entries System. So like this we have a process for all the activities that we do in business.
ERPs are developed using Standard Business Operating Procedure so you can say adoption of ERP software for your company can really provide a very efficient and robust business process to handle your day to day activities.
Main features of ERP
As per my experience and understanding ERP must have all the modules which are required to manage a business. In general we need the following modules like Finance, Inventory, Sales ,Assets, Purchase, CRM, HRM and then as per industry special modules are needed like Manufacturing, Projects, logistics and other as per industry.
All the modules should be tightly integrated so that every department can work separately and still be connected.
Like if your salesperson puts in any expense claim and then the system should send it to their manager for approval and then once the manager approves it then the finance department shall get notification to credit the payment. So without any manual communication system they have the capacity to coordinate with all the departments.
Technical Evaluation of and ERP software.
How to evaluate an ERP software ?
First of all you should divide ERP in two parts.
- One is Functional
- Second is Technical
In the Functional part you can check all the features of ERP which are being provided and how easy or how it is handling your entries or record keeping methods. Functional understanding of an ERP is very very much important as your user will use the features and functions only. More efficient function means a more complex situation you can handle in that ERP software.
In Technical part you can check the following things
- Technology behind software.
- How easy to customize .
- What language is being used to process backend data?
- Data security and its efficiency.
- Large data processing .
- What database is being used.
- Whether multiple databases are supported or not.
- Whether providing only Cloud or On-Premise.
- Also check Hybrid implementation possible or not if you are implementing for Hyper Market or where 0% downtime is required.
- How scalable it is
- Also check update and backup process
Also note you should always have a consultant with you while choosing ERP software otherwise you end up with wrong software or it can cause you very high implementation cost or entirely fail.
ERP software is not just a software it is an ecosystem in your company it is a lifestyle for your business.
Who should use ERP software?
Every business, ERP should be like blood flow in the body for your business. If you need to scale and have proper control over your business then you should plan for ERP from the very first day.
ERP also reduces confusion between your employees and reduces the gap between employee and management.
ERP implementation challenges.
ERP implementation is very not everyone’s cup of tea. Most of the time if you have chosen a good ERP then also ERP implementation can fail. Implementation partners play a major role to make any ERP successful in companies. If your partner from whom you bought software and not having good years of experience in implementing ERP then you can face huge challenges and catastrophic situations.
Also in some companies we have noticed that they want to implement ERP software but they do not want to change their legacy process even if it is wrong .
So resisting all your legacy processes can really create a non movable situation during ERP implementation. Companies with a fixed set of mind can really fail the entire ERP implementation. When adapting new software and want to make tomorrow better for your business, then you have to go with Standard Business Operating Procedure.
Learn more about accu360 ERP https://docs.accu360.in